It is the usual practice to play one’s secondary players in Open Cup matches to preserve health and fitness in one’s starters. It’s risky and it backfired for DC United Coach Chad Ashton on Tuesday night.
Until stoppage time of the first half his decision seemed wise. The game had been evenly played and there would be a chance to bring on the heavy hitters in the second half. Although it had appeared from his substitution pattern Saturday night that Ashton was preparing to use many starters on Tuesday, instead, he chose to follow custom.
When New York scored just before the half, Ashton could still have responded by bringing on his starters for the second half, but continued to risk only to have hopes dashed with another Red Bull goal early. From that time forward, New York drove the pace more and more.
Throughout the game, diminished quality of play was shown by both teams as the Red Bulls chose to play long balls down the wing and United was ineffective playing from the back. The latter requires a level of team cohesion and talent that was not available from a side that had expected difficulty connecting.
The only DC player who appeared to threaten the Red Bulls was Griffin Yow, a sometime starter with high energy and slippery dribbling skills. With a few starters to compliment his level of play, the result may well have been different.
The defense displayed poor marking in the absence of team Captain Steve Birnbaum and his usual defensive mates. Most egregious was a grievous failure to communicate as widely placed Cameron Harper was marked too late as frantic defenders failed to respond to his positioning. His free run onto the ball made the last Red Bulls goal a simple matter of execution.
With the Open Cup out of reach, DC United now has only one hope to reach postseason play and the playoffs are a long shot. The only good news, and a very small consolation, is that the squad will have fewer midweek games which may allow a more rested squad in the dog days of summer late in the season.
Despite the rivalry and decent weather, the crowd was sparse. The few who came made a mighty effort to cheer on the home side with drumming and chants of the usual high quality from the supporters’ groups. The performance on the field was not up to their hopes.
The spark to wake the team up and increase attendance is available with players like Taxi Fountas, Sofiane Djeffal, and Griffin Yow. Backed by the usual three solid starting defenders, they might turn the season into a reasonably cloud pleasing series of events.
